Daniel Ricciardo

Ricciardo accused of being the 'clown' of the paddock

Martin Macdonald Tuesday 10 December 2019 10:50

Ricciardo accused of being the 'clown' of the paddock

Formula 1 commentator Olav Mol has suggested that Daniel Ricciardo will only gain success in the sport if he stops acting like the “clown” among the drivers, and starts to take things more seriously.

Last year the Australian made the surprising decision to move from Red Bull to Renault, with the French manufacturer having aspirations of potential bridging the gap to the top three.

That didn’t happen, though, with McLaren instead emerging as the ‘best of the rest’ constructor team.

Mol thinks Ricciardo’s attitude hasn’t helped Renault progress.

“He has not improved,” he told Formule1.

“Wanting to be the clown of the paddock is not good enough. Ricciardo is very nice and super PR, but on the job?

Verstappen can't fight for F1 title because of Honda, says VilleneuveRead more

“In Brazil he came from the back to the front but aside from that I have not seen enough ‘real Ricciardo moments’.

“And I haven’t seen him make Renault better. He has to be less cheerful and hit the table more.”

Ricciardo is known for being a prankster in and around the paddock, but up until now has not been accused of being too “cheerful”.

Latest News

Lewis Hamilton

Lewis Hamilton issue emerges after overwhelming Ferrari demand

20 minutes ago

F1 Today

F1 News Today: Alpine confirm Doohan replacement at Japanese GP as team announce NEW driver signing

1 hour ago

GPFans Recap

Tsunoda’s Ricciardo change revealed as Red Bull confirm LEGENDARY return - F1 Recap

Yesterday 23:58

Lewis Hamilton

Lewis Hamilton teases Charles Leclerc movie link-up

Yesterday 22:57

Red Bull

How HEATED Daniel Ricciardo exchange led to Red Bull star's 'serious' change

Yesterday 21:55

F1 Social

Guenther Steiner responds to absurd F1 return offer

Yesterday 20:58

More news

F1 Race Calendar 2025

GP AUSTRALIA 14 - 14 Mar

GP BAHRAIN 11 - 11 Apr

GP SAUDI ARABIA 18 - 18 Apr

GP USA 2 - 2 May

GP ITALY 16 - 16 May

GP MONACO 23 - 23 May

GP SPAIN 30 - 30 May

Complete kalender 2025

F1 News 24/7

Races

About GPFans

GPFans is a multi-platform, multi-language brand dedicated to Formula One coverage. We bring you all the ins and outs of the sport, 24/7, everything from up-to-the-minute news and features to the latest viral stories and clips.

We believe that a new generation of exciting, outspoken drivers will make F1 more popular than ever before, and we want to give our users access to as much of their heroes as possible, on and off the track. From Lewis Hamilton to Max Verstappen, Daniel Ricciardo to Sebastian Vettel, we provide in-depth analysis of every every Grand Prix in the season, from Australia to Abu Dhabi.

With Formula One under the new ownership of Liberty Media, how the sport is being covered is evolving, and GPFans will look to be at the heart of this progression into new media, as one of the fastest-growing sites covering the king of motorsports.

Follow us on your favorite social media channel

Corporate & Media

Innovatieweg 20C
7007 CD, Doetinchem, Netherlands
+31645516860

CHOOSE YOUR COUNTRY

Ricciardo accused of being the 'clown' of the paddock

Ricciardo accused of being the 'clown' of the paddock